The Ducks' Brad Staubitz, left, and David Steckel celebrate Staubitz's second-period goal against the Canucks in Vancouver on Thursday. DARRYL DYCK, AP

VANCOUVER, B.C. – Literally nothing was at stake for the Ducks – or the Vancouver Canucks for that matter – on Thursday night other than the potential for an ill-timed injury with the postseason right around the corner.

So the Ducks let their big men on campus chill out for a night and allowed their not-quite-as-popular friends, the bench-warmers and the new guys up from the junior varsity come out of the shadows into the light.

Even with many big names missing from the lineup, the Ducks had no problem handling the largely complete Canucks as their 3-1 win at Rogers Arena made them the third NHL team with 30 victories in this lockout-marred 48-game season.

The Ducks (30-11-6) put their emphasis on making sure key players got some rest while awaiting their first-round opponent as the Western Conference's No. 2 seed. Vancouver already has the third seed locked up as the Northwest Division titlist.

Ryan Getzlaf, Teemu Selanne, Saku Koivu and Bryan Allen all sat out while Bobby Ryan was already back home, recovering from lingering flu symptoms. Luca Sbisa missed his fifth consecutive game due to a persistent lower-body injury.

There was still a game to be played and Matt Beleskey and Brad Staubitz, who aren't known for grabbing headlines, scored in the second on Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo to provide offensive support for Jonas Hiller in goal.

The Ducks managed to limit Vancouver to just nine shots over the first 40 minutes even though the usual suspects such as Henrik and Daniel Sedin, Ryan Kesler and Alex Burrows were all on the ice for the Canucks.

"It was great for us," said Hiller, who stopped 28 shots. "I thought, especially the first two periods, we found a way to put a lot of pressure on them. I think we played our best if we put pressure on them. Forecheck hard, first guy gets in there and hits them.

"That's what those guys who got a chance to play tonight did. They wanted to show they might also want to be in the lineup when the playoffs start."

It wasn't a meaningless game for some players that drew in.

Call-ups such as Patrick Maroon and Devante Smith-Pelly, who joined the team on Wednesday from Norfolk (Va.) of the American Hockey League, got their chance to impress Coach Bruce Boudreau.

Maroon logged nearly 14 minutes of ice time while playing on the second line with Nick Bonino and Kyle Palmieri. Smith-Pelly drew third-line duty and played more than 13minutes.

"I expect the other guys to be just as good as the guys sitting out," Boudreau said prior to the game. "I tell them that and, whether they believe or not, that's my expectations. Whoever puts that sweater on, this is an opportunity for them.

"If they want to get chances to play in the playoffs, they've got to show something now. We've had all the other guys up there at some point in the year. They've done well for us. So there's no reason why they shouldn't do well tonight."

Staubitz appreciated the bonus ice time and made it count. The little-used winger came down the right side and let loose a shot from at the edge of the right circle that skipped off the stick of Vancouver's Andrew Alberts and eluded Luongo.

It was the first goal of the season for Staubitz and just his 10th in 230 career NHL games.

"It was just nice to get one," said Staubitz, who's been in just 15 games with the Ducks. "Good to get in a few games here and just being able to contribute is huge. Get some playing time and just did my thing."

Hiller, meanwhile, made another push for the Game 1 start when the playoffs begin as he continued trading razor-sharp efforts with Viktor Fasth. He made 19 of his saves in the third as the sleepy Canucks finally began to apply pressure.

All that got by Hiller was Jason Garrison's one-timer with Ducks defensemen Ben Lovejoy and Sheldon Souray both sitting in the penalty box. The veteran Hiller has allowed two or fewer goals in six of his last seven outings.

"I'm not too worried about it," Hiller said. "If I get the chance to play, I want to play as well as possible. Sure, it's nice if you know a little earlier and are kind of able to prepare yourself that way.

"I felt like I played pretty well the last three games I've played. I'm definitely going in the right direction."

Boudreau joked that "they both want to start evidently because they're stopping everything in sight." Fasth will get his chance to present a final argument on Saturday in the regular-season finale at home against Phoenix.

"He's been playing great for the last month and a half," Boudreau said of Hiller. "He showed me that we have two good goalies. The coach, I don't think, can screw it up by putting either one of them in net for the playoffs."

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